Duplicator.



010.801,005. PATENTED 00T.10, 1905.

' A. M. AYERS.

DUPLICATOR.

APPLICATION FILED 101111.13, 1905.

"'NTTED STATE@ ALBERT M. AYERS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO ERNEST L. BECK PATENT OFFTOE.

DUPLICATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 10, 1905.

Application filed March 13, 1905. Serial No. 249,746.

To (//7/l whom it may] concern.:

Be it known that I, ALBERT M. A rims, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Brooklyn, in the county of King's and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful lm provements in Duplicators, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to duplicators of that class in which a duplicating-band is shiftable to different positions to bring different working portions thereof into action, as may be desired, without waiting to remove the ink from the sections which have been used.

The principal object of this invention is to provide means for more perfectly adjusting the position and tension of the working portion of the band. VIn order to accomplish this result, the bed or table over which the working portion of the band passes and on which such portion rests is movable in such a manner as to be self-adjusting and self-leveling and constitute a take-up device capable of compensatingl for differences in tension on the band at opposite ends of the bed. I prefer to employ 'for this purpose a bed or table having a simple rocking' or oscillatory movement about an axis crosswise of the box, this bed being preferably mounted in half-bearings and removable therefrom by simply lifting it out of its bearings.

ln duplicators of this type it has been customary to mount the duplicating-band on delivery and take-up rollers and to feed the band from the one to the other, as required. These rollers have heretofore been mounted in the box in such a marmer as to render it difficult to remove and replace the same for inspection, Sac., as is desirable.

To provide a duplicator so constructed that even an unskilled person can remove the rollers and other vital parts of the apparatus without impairing the adjustments of the parts or the operation of the same, l prefer to employ in my improved duplicator a roller` and end bearings of such construction that the roller may be readily snapped into place and removed again when desired without removing' the bearings or other parts. 71th this in view I prefer to provide an extensible roller which can be quickly snapped or sprung into place and as easily removed and which will retain its position and be properly located even when there is some difference in the inside transverse dimensions of the boxes into which it is intended to tit.

Other features which distinguish my improved duplicator from others now in use relate to open-sided end bearings adapted tocooperate with extensible rollers such as just described, to permit instantaneous insertion or removal of the roller, and also to prevent pulling out of the rolls when tension is put on the duplieating-bands; to bushings in which the other ends of the rollers may be supported, these bushings beingl so constructed as to be secured in place and released by a slight movement and being so held in place that the strain on the rollers has no tendency to loosen the fastening devices forthc bushings; to hooks so constructed as to be capable of securing in place both the cover of the box and a sliding' drawer for the reception of tools, &c.; to a sliding drawer located under the bed over which the working portionof the band passes, and to certain other matters which will be hereinafter described and claimed.

All of these features are shown in the acompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a side elevation, with parts broken away. and the cover removed, of a duplicator embodying this invention. Fig. Qis a plan of the same. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same with the cover in place and closed and with the ends broken away and parts rcmoved to illustrate how the rollers are retained in place in the open-sided end bearings by which they are supported. Fig'. A is an enlarged detail illustrating in sectional end elevation one of my improved rollers for carrying the duplicating-band, this view also showing the end bearings by which the roller is supported. Fig. 5 is a sectional detail, the section beingtaken in the line 5 5, Fig. i, looking in the direction of the arrow and illustrates the mode of connecting the body portion of the roller with an end section thereof.

Similar characters designate like parts in all the figures of the drawings.

The various parts of the duplicator will usually be embodied in a box, such as 2, having a cover 3, which will usually be hinged to one side thereof. This cover is secured tothe body of the box by fastening' devices, which will be hereinafter described. The box 2 is of sutticient depth to receive those portions IOC of the duplicating-band which `are not in use, such portions being usually carried by delivery and take-up rollers. The duplicating medium orband is shown at 4 and has a Working face formed in the usual manner by a gelatinous film adapted to receive negative impressions in ink of matter to be duplicated.

' It will'be. evident that because of the length of this band a large number of such negative impressions may be `made in the gelatinous surface before it will be necessary to reuse any portion thereof. The band may be held and shifted at its ends in any suitable manner, but will preferably be secured to delivery and take-up rollers, such as 5, the preferred construction and mode of mounting which will also be hereinafter described.

In order to provide a support for the working portion 4/ of the band, I make use, as is usual, of a bed over which the band may travel, and this bed is preferably so constructed as to constitute a take-up device and have a takeup movement for compensating for differences in tension on the band at opposite ends of the bed. In the construction shown this bed,

which is designated by 6, is considerably shorter than the box 2, and a large space is left at each end of the bed between the bed and the end walls of the box, in which spaces the delivery and take-up rollers 5, before referred to, may be located. The bed 6 is preferably pivoted between its ends about an axis crosswise of the box in order that it may have simultaneous movements in opposite directions at opposite ends for the purpose of taking up and giving up portions of the band adjacenty to such ends, and thereby compensating for dierences in tension at such points. In the preferred construction the bed ,6 is mounted for oscillation about a substantially central axis transverse to the bed, this axis passing in this case through a half-journal 7, secured to the under side of the bed 6 and working in corresponding half-bearings 8 at opposite sides of the box. This construction also facilitates the Vremoval of the bed 6 forvinspection of the same and all parts located thereunder, the bed being removable by merely lifting it out of the bearings 8. The oscillating or rocking motion of said bed permits it to compensate perfectly for the inequalities in tension at opposite ends of the Working portion of the band, and when suitable tension is put on the band at the rollers 5 the bed will always distribute this tension in such a manner thatthe two ends of the working portion 4 will be under practically the same tension. The surface of the bed 6 under such circumstances may be either horizontal or at a slight angle in either direction to the horizontal, according to the manner` in which the tension is put on the band at one end or the other of the same, and according also to the extent to which such end is tensioned. In order to facilitate the movements of the duplicating-band and prevent cutting of the same, the opposite ends of the bed 6 are preferably rounded, as shown. The rocking motion of the bed 6, it should be noted, is a limited one, as a slight movement is sufiicient to compensate for differences in tension at opposite ends of the band. The extent of this movement is indicated in Figs. 1 and 8, Where stops or posts 8' are shown for limiting the movements of opposite ends of said bed.

Any suitable means for holding, shifting, and tensioning the band 4 may of course be employed; but 1 prefer to embody in the means employed for this purpose delivery and takeup rollers 5, so constructed as to be readily insertible in and removable from their end bearings. The preferred construction is illustrated in detail in Fig. 4, in which the body of the roller 5 is provided atits opposite ends with ferrules, such as 9 and 10, which will usually be made of metal and securely fastened to the wooden ends of the roller. One endA of said roller-to wit, that at which the ferrule 9 is placed--has in this case a deep central recess in the end thereof, which recess is shown as oblong in cross-section and as gradually tapering. The ferrule 9 has a central portion similarly shaped 'and forming a lining 9' for such opening. At its opposite end the roller has a longitudinal bore 11 of large diameter, and the ferrule 10 has a central ope-ning of smaller diameter. In the bore 11 a pin 12 of two diameters works, the portion of larger diameter fitting the bore 11 in the roller and the portion of smaller diameter fitting the opening in the ferrule 10, so that the pin in its movements back and forth is positively guided by the Walls of the two openings. Behind this pin in the bore 11 is placed a spring 13, which normally tends to force the pin out into engagement with the walls of the end bearing, such as 14. AThis end bearing is preferably driven into a bored opening in a sidewall of the box and has threads, such as 15, which may be circular, for the purpose of obtaining a firm hold on the Wood. This end bearinghas an open side 16, and the extreme outer end Wall of this open side is inclined so as to fQrmacarn-face, down which the end of the pin 12 will ride. At the end of this face 17 the end of the pin slips into the end wall of the bearing, which end wall is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4, and slopes oppositely to and merges gradually into the wall 17. This construction assures the locking of the end of the pin in place. The roller and this end bearing also constitute a construction one of the elements of Which4in this case the roller-vis extensible and retractile with respect to the other for the purpose of permitting the roller to seatitself in its bearing by merely snapping the.

roller into position, it being unnecessary to remove this bearing either to insert or remove the roller. At the opposite end of the roller IOO I prefer to make use of a bearing and other parts substantially of the construction shown at the right in Fig. 4. This end bearing is a bushing18, having' a winged portion or extension 19, having open-sided slots (see Fig'. 1) adapted to surround the Shanks of screws 20, which screws when tightened will hold the bushing' firmly in place. The direction of strain on a roller in an apparatus of this kind is always transverse to the roller, and when the bearing and its securingI devices are placed in position in the manner shown and locked therein as illustrated the strains on the roller have practically no tendency to loosen the screws of the bearing, as is the ease when the bearing is held in place by screws transverse to the roller. The bushing 18 constitutes in this case a bearing' for a journalsection of the roller which is separated from the body portion of said roller and also includes elements for turning' the roller and lockingthe same in any desired position. Here said bushingl constitutes a bearing for a trunnion 21, having' secured thereto a ratchetwheel Q2, a stop-collar 23 for limiting` the movement of the roller in one direction, a squared end 24 for turning' the roller and winding the band, and a tapering projection 25, adapted to [it into the tapering'opening' in the ferrnle 9 at 9 and constituting the complementary member of a connection between thc body of the roller and the end section for permitting' connection and disconnection of these parts by a sliding' movement lengthwise of the roller, while preventing rotary movement of said parts when connected.

It will be seen by referring to Fig'. 3 that not only do the end bearings 14 have open sides, but that these open sides face outward at considerable ang'les. The reason for this is that when the duplicating-band is tensioned, as is always the case when a portion thereof is in use, the tension on the band is applied to the rollers as an upward and inward pull, and when the open-sided bearings slope upward and outward, as shown in Fig. 3, the direction in which the pull on the band is exerted is such that the rollers are not drawn out of their bearings, but are held firmly in place at the bottoms of the slots formed by the walls 16.

The shifting' of the band and the tensioning' thereof are accomplished, preferably, in the usual way by turning' the roller by means of a key (not shown) fitting the squared end 21k of each roller. For the purpose of holding' the rollers in any desired position locking-pawls, such as Q6, may be used, these pawls cooperating with the teeth of the ratchetwheels 22 in the well-known manner.

The various tools and other accessories of a duplicator may be placed in a suitable drawer, this drawer being preferably a sliding one, such as that shown at 27, completely inclosed above, as well as at the sides and bottom, as

indicated in Figs. 1 and 2. This drawer is located` preferably, centrally and directly under the center of the rocking' bed 6.

Both the cover 3 and the drawer 27 should be held in place by suitable fastening devices. I prefer to employ for this purpose hooks which are located near the opposite sides of the front end of the drawer 27 and are secured to the box proper in the usual manner. These hooks, which are designated by 28, are substantially similar to the well-known type of hook for securing' a hinged cover to a box except that they are provided with tailpieces 528/, which when the hooks are caught on the studs of the cover, as shown, are so positioned as to overlap the edges of the drawer 27 and lock the drawer also tirmly in place. Then said hooks are released from the studs on the cover, the tailpieces 2b will swing' clear of the drawer and both the cover and the drawer `will be released at substantially the same time.

'Vhat I claim is l. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed having' a take-up movement, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends oversaid bed, and means for holding' and shifting said band.

2. In a du plicator, the combination with a box, of a bed having' a take-up movement, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding', shifting and tensioning' said band.

3. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed having' a take-up movement, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, delivery and take-up rollers for said band, and means cooperative with said rollers for tensioning' said band.

4. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed mounted 'for oscillation about an axis extending' erosswise of the box, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding' and shifting' said band.

5. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed mounted for oscillation about an axis extending' erosswise of the box, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding, shifting and tensioning' said band.

6. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed mounted for oscillation aboutan axis located between its ends and extending' erosswise of the box, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band.

7. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed mounted for oscillation about a central axis extending' erosswise of the box, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding' and shifting' said band.

8. In a duplicator, the combination with a box having half-bearings, of a bed mounted for oscillation in said half-bearings about an ICO axis located between the ends of the bed and extending crosswise of the box, a duplicatingband a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band.

9. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, Of a bed mounted to have alimited os? cillatory movement about an axis extending crosswise of the box, stops for limiting said movement of the bed, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band.

10. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, andv means for holding and shifting said band, said meansincluding a roller and an end bearing therefor one of which is extensible relatively to the other and also including means for tensioning the working portion of said band.

11. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band, said means including a roller having an axis capable of being extended or shortened and also including means for tensioning the working portion of said band.

12. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, delivery and take-up rollers for said band said rollers having axes capable of being extended or shortened, and means coacting with the rollers for tensioning the working portion of said band.

13. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band, said means including a roller having an axis capable of being extended or shortened and an open-sided bearing into which the end of said roller may be snapped and also including means for tensioning the working portion of said band.

14. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band, said means including a pair of rollers and open-sided end bearings for said rollers the open sides of which bearings face outward.

15. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed, a duplicating-banda portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band, said means including a roller, a bushing seated in a bore in the box and forming a bearing for one end of said roller, and means for securing and releasing said bushing.

16. In a duplicator, the combination with a box, of a bed, a duplicating-band a portion of which extends over said bed, and means for holding and shifting said band, said means including a roller having a body portion and an end bearing united by a connection permitting relative endwise sliding movement but preventing relative rotary movement and also including means for tensioning the working portion of said band.

17. In a duplicator, the combination with a box having a cover, of a bed, a sliding drawer in said box and movable crosswise thereof, and hooks for connecting said box and cover, said hooks being secured to the box at points near opposite sides of the front of the drawer and having tailpieces which in the latched positions of the hooks also latch said drawer.

Signed at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 8th day of March, A. D. 1905.

ALBERT M. AYERS.

Iitnesses:

C. S. CHAMPION, N. C. DONATO. 

